Hello TV Addicts! This is Mike V. of the Lost Addicts Blog among others. This blog covers any TV past, present and future! Look for my recaps/commentary on the latest episodes of Game of Thrones and The Walking Dead, archived recaps on Fringe and several others, and weekly open forums on the current episodes of several other favorite shows. Please continue to chime in with your thoughts too!

45 comments:

When I get a minute I'll post those last few comments from last week's blog again. But I just have to say:

Grimm - I believe I was standing on a ledge by myself suggesting that Renard was not a target and that perhaps they took out the mayor intentionally to line things up for RENARD to become Mayor. Hmmmm....that seems to be exactly what happened! :)

Okay...here are the final posts from last week (and maybe one from earlier!!)

Richard Said

Vikings--Pay attention to this new King. I'm honestly not sure exactly how this will go. It really depends on how they portray the norse people and the geography. Keep in mind this season has 20 eps divided up with 10 and 10. So, I think some will get out of Kattegat, particularly Bjorn with his map. I think Ragnar is good for 1 or 2 more trips out of Kattegat. I'll know if it's last based upon where he goes since I know where and how he dies. I would say it was about 3 to 5 months since Ragnar left Paris since cold weather was starting and it's Christmas now. And yes, I wish I could learn French that fast--but he wasn't perfect either. What got me was the Chinese girl speaking Norse so quickly and NO tutor. And it looked like she spoke French too.

Colony--I would have said on Thursday before the show that you were missing something that could really be good. I just don't see how the show can recover from that idiocy last night. MJ, btw, I was hoping Kate would confess to Will vs him approaching her on it.

Shield--I can't either--lol. It just started seeming like so much nonsense happening so quickly like a stage was being set or something and time was running out. I saw a news highlight of the new movie and yes Spiderman was in it. So, it seems a civil war here and bathman vs superman there--hollywood seems to be liking divorces of a certain type--lol. The explanation of how Shield is supposed to operate now seemed weak given the good they've done but it wasn't bad. I guess one thing that gets old is knowing how some new super undefeatable baddie will always end up loosing. Like Ward becoming some superman for the bad only we know not really since skye will beat him up badly. Sitting here writing this out, these plotlines are more easily accepted when they are spread out by years as done with movies in the past. A weekly diet of it makes it less impactful and seem like an eye roller. There's a reason comic books were for kids--lol.

RichardMarch 11, 2016 at 2:10 PM

MJ said... Gotham - been better since it's return. And who knew that Morena Baccarin was preggers in real life - with Jim Gordon's kid ! The actors are dating apparently. Mr. Freeze might actually make an interesting villan. Why on earth do they keep sending a doctor (Baccarin) to do autopsies and psych evals ? LOL DB Wong is doing a fabulous job - as is whoever plays his assistant/nurse. She is just evil ! March 11, 2016 at 3:04 PM

Mike V. said... Gotham - I was going to comment on that earlier too! I had no idea they were dating. The TV guide article suggested that Morena's ex husband says that the child was conceived before they split up which actually caused the breakup. Crazy!! DB Wong is doing a great job agreed. And Mr. Freeze is also much more interesting than when Ahhhnold played him. lol

I'll comment on Vikings/Shield later....just had to come into discuss that scandalous Gotham news! lolMarch 11, 2016 at 3:33 PM

Anonymous said... Grimm--so Monroe is sick from the bite then made better from the wand. And they couldn't even wait an ep before messing with Adalind and Nick. She really did a good job showing her desire for normalcy. Loved the trip to Germany. And the 800 year old chest, etc. So, is that a witch's wand, obviously some kind of magic. And Renard for mayor, we kind of thought that might be coming. But, I was obviously wrong on Renard being the target. Blackclaw obviously has a long game in mind.

RichardMarch 11, 2016 at 10:13 PM

Anonymous said... Grimm--some ponderings1 What if the wand didn't just heal Monroe but took his powers. And if it did for him, could maybe do so for Adalind and be a tremendous aid in the upcoming war.2 What if the wand does one thing for grimms and another for wessen. This could have some near term accidents and/or long term serious concerns.

Vikings--Bjorn's girlfriend can guide him to whom gave the ring to the bezerker.

Richard

And of course most importantly on 3/7 Mike V saidGrimm - The biggest foreshadowing on Nick/Adalind was when Monroe said something like how nice she's been and he says, "hope she stays that way." lol Clearly she's going to become a wesen again eventually! You're probably right with the townspeople being okay with Nick and Monroe. Maybe for some reason they want to put Renard in the Mayorial seat? They seem to have been pushing for that already plotwise.

Grimm - That bullet seemed pretty aimed at the candidate and no one messed with his shot...but who knows?

Grimm--yea you got that right about Renard, all by yourself. The Adalind stuff, well, I think we all sense that happiness just can't last for Nick. And yes, the foreshadowing by Monroe.

Gotham--I had NO idea that the Doc and Cop were dating. That would be awful for her to get pregnant by the cop while still married. I mean, pregnant has to practically be on purpose these days by educated adults.

Swamped at work today. Haven't even been over to TWD blog or any sites today.

Sleepy - Pandora is so over her ex. LOL Should have known since Joe and Jenny seem happy that something would happen. Did not see it coming that the symbol thing is not a bad thing and is very cool. Creature this week was nasty !

Grimm - damn ! Adalind is turning back to a hexenbiest ! I had hoped not. Very cool with the 7 Grimm Crusaders skulls being there. How funny was 'not all Blutbats look alike Nick!" . Monroe definitely not looking good after that bite - they did the gradual worsening well. So what is this healing stick ? Not sure where this whole Ex-guy of Rosalies is coming from. I know a few weeks ago she was getting letters or calls but this seems like out of nowhere - but loved the way Adalind broke his fingers. If the stick does one thing to Grimms and another to Wesen - that could get very interesting !

Grimm - I was just messing around. I didn't think any of this stuff was impossible to figure out or anything! lol Interesting point on the "Wand" possibly helping Adalind too. All interesting points you bring up....I'm sure its effects will vary and bring a whole new twist to the show.

Gotham - "on purpose" - yeah you'd think so!

Vikings - Thanks for the info on the timeframe...I still am confused how this new boy aged so much...but there had to be some time pass between the prior invasions and Paris...so I'm sure it all adds up.

Shield/BVS/Civil War - Yes there does seem to be a theme with all of these movies...of course they are all based on comic stories too. But, the fact that they both got greenlit to be released around the same time frame is interesting. But, I think it's really just making use of the successful formula the first Avengers movie used. Groups of heroes at odds with each other, but eventually overcome their differences to take on the greater foe. The only one I'm not sure that will happen in is Civil War....but surely eventually that will happen. They are all HEROES after all. Good points on SHIELD too....and of course yes....Comic Books are intended for children! These movies and shows target a larger demographic...but yeah eventually we've seen all of these stories before. (hence why stuff that happens in Grimm can be somewhat predictable) But, if you enjoy the escapism and enjoy spending time with the characters at hand going through these similar stories...then maybe it's time worth spending. If not...maybe it's time to get out!

I guess the after-show discussion aspect is still of some value, but even that will get tougher as the years go on and the TV offerings keep multiplying. Eventually no one will be watching the same shows.

Granted...communities like this could recommend shows and then all people in that community might watch the same thing and can continue discussing.

Predictable TV. I guess that's why I like Perry Mason reruns. It's not predictable and sometimes if you pay attention you can figure the case out based on logic. Now of course, it is absolutely predictable that his client is not guilty--lol. But outside of that, many possibilities exist and that is all unpredictable. And usually logical with a well written script.

"Too many TV options"--lots of programming out there. I have begun to watch more reruns from cable channels specializing on those types of shows. Most newer shows have better sets and production though. There can't be enough money to keep these various new productions going. Even mighty ESPN is hurting. So, while there are lots of new shows I think it a temporary scenario. Unless it takes a lot less money to produce a program than I understand.

Almost all of my friends are shocked to find out that only a few hundred thousand watch many cable TV news shows. And if you notice, a lot of layoffs have occured and they are asking the talent to do more shows. Almost nobody sends a news crew out anymore. Why do you think they focus on NYC and DC stories--they're cheap to produce since they have a major facility in each location--lol.

I believe many are working to position themselves to maximize their outcome as the industry is undergoing structural changes with an ending which is unknown. So, it's like throwing everything at the wall and see what sticks. To be the "last man standing or standing best" if you will.

One thing I hear from my kids is that they watch youtube videos which are done by other kids. So, none of the big companies benefit. My daughter does a few videos and has some people follow her. She hasn't tried to commercialize it yet.

YouTube Videos - Oh yeah...my son (4) is obsessed with all kinds of videos. Toy Unboxing (ads are enabled), video game walkthroughs (with the most annoying narrators of all time), Thomas the Train stories (where people use the toys and tell stories with them on elaborate track setups)....all kinds of stuff.... we're always trying to figure out what our big YouTube video is going to be. These people rake in millions in ad revenue. It's insane. And yes...my son does not even like to watch broadcast TV. He immediately turns on the apple tv (insert streaming device of choice), goes to YouTube or the Disney Jr. app and finds an on demand show to watch.

Too many Options/COST - Well the whole thing is now content providers are working on building catalogs. So it may cost money to produce such and such content THIS year...but then they have that content FOREVER....immediate ratings don't matter in this strategy. It's all about having the more competitive content catalog. Netflix has a big head start on other competitors as it even has some of the other network and studio content on its service. HBO has done a nice job building up its catalog and has the benefit of having many emmy award winning programs in its history and present day.

I guess the thing is..the whole structure is changing....money is going directly to these content providers instead of to cable companies....so the cost associated is a little different. But you'd think if their subscriber growth is exponential, their budget will continue to increase. And maybe their content will reach a saturation point where they will slow down production...but then they still have all of this years of content built up for people to access.

Really...what will distinguish one service from the other is if they're able to crack the code on convincing the end user what program to watch. All I know is that when I log into Netflix or Amazon Instant Video or even my DVR...I just see a bunch of stuff that I'd like to watch but I get so overwhelmed that I eventually give up and put on FRIENDS Reruns or something. lol If someone can provide a means to convince me and my wife to watch the same show RIGHT THEN and there....then they're onto something.

That's all interesting information on the cable news scene. I certainly don't watch them and get all my skewed information from social media (instead of skewed information from the liberal or conservative news stations lol). Of course, I need to try and weed my way through extremist points of view to find the truth!

There's really only one way to sum up all of this change: GOOD TIMES. :)

ON building content libraries. There already exists decades of content libraries. 1000s of eps of various shows are out there. CBS,NBC, ABC have tremendous catalogs. It's just that it's dated. Point being, the currently "new" catalog will be dated in a decade or so. Which points to the need for an ongoing revenue stream which can justify costs of ongoing production. I agree we are in a kind of golden age of TV. And yes, almost too much out there. Certainly there is no easy way to keep up with what may be upcoming as a new great show and then try a few. So, yes 70s show reruns and Perry Mason reruns-lol.

So, you don't watch ESPN?

What social media news sources do you use? I keep hearing that term but outside of an internet news aggregator, I'm not sure what is meant?

Content Libraries - yeah...they'll have to keep refreshing it. But the thing is...networks don't have access to those catalogs fully...the old stuff was produced by various studios. And even Netflix has bought up exclusive rights to a lot of that old content. (For example FRIENDS is HUGE in syndication, Warner Bros owns it and now Netflix has the streaming rights to it...not NBC. I know you're referring to older shows than that, but that's a big example) And streaming audiences are discovering FRIENDS for the first time NOW...and just streaming it from start to finish. They don't care what's on the air now...there's plenty of content to keep them entertained and eventually it'll show up on their service (maybe)...if not, they'll just watch something else that IS on their service.

As for the Golden Age....well technically the Golden Age of Modern Television ended after the BIG 4 shows were over (if you go by the TV critic consensus) The age of the anti-hero Sopranos, The Wire, Breaking Bad and Mad Men were the critical darlings and arguably the "best shows of all time". LOST, 24, Deadwood and many other shows are brought up in the discussion as well. Now they're calling this new age the "SILVER" age. lol Where there's a lot (a ridiculous amount) of QUALITY content, but nothing that quite matches those big 4.

Game of Thrones and The Walking Dead are relics of the past where there still is a real-time discussion that has to happen and that you HAVE to watch the night it airs or you will be spoiled and MISS the discussion. People vs. OJ is kinda capturing that Zeitgeist at the moment as well.

I guess it's a good problem to have (Too much content)...but it does kind of destroy the whole "watercooler" concept of television. If not everyone is watching the same thing, how can you discuss it? I guess that's where these niche audiences will find their fellow fans online in certain corners of the internet like reddit, facebook, twitter, etc.... Even blogging is a dead art! lol

I really don't watch too much ESPN. I never was a big watcher of Sports Center, but it's near impossible now with my kids. If the TV is on, it's kiddie shows all the time (and streaming like I mentioned lol) I'd have to actively not browse facebook or twitter and pull up my ESPN app to watch some shows.

Social Media News Sources - well it's really just Facebook, Twitter...people will share articles or like something and it shows up on my feed. So I get people giving their life updates and also their opinions on what's going on in the world. But there are usually articles attached where I can get the actual news (even if it is a right winged or left winged opinion...there is news in there somewhere)

I also subscribe to news alerts from my local ABC news affiliate and ABC world news. So if anything big is happening...like say Putin pulling forces out of Syria...I get the notification on my phone.

I also subscribe to local sports updates from ESPN so I'm always up to date on Flyers, Eagles, Phillies....

And I subscribe to twitter notifications from all of the entertainment news sources and certain people I follow....so when something happens...it's on my phone right then.

In other words...my phone is always lighting up with a lot of useless info...but sometimes it's something I'm interested in!! lol

Gotham--who's the clown girl? I don't get why shows try to make us believe things like Bruce killing the killer. There was never any tension and it just seemed not just forced but the entire plotline seemed forced. The penguin stuff was great. Actually lots of stuff was good. Bruce going away with Selina is an interesting plotline. I wonder how old they're supposed to be? I also wonder when Bruce will go away to Raz Agul for training? I like that Batman didn't just happen but was made through different events, training, education, etc.

Was out last night so no : Bates, Vikings from last week, Saul, Blindspot, Gotham, Quantico, Shameless. Sigh. this is going to be a rough week. LOL

Too much content/cost. It is an interesting problem to have too much to watch. Makes me give up other things that I liked but don't have time for. recently quit Rosewood which I enjoyed and Shades of Blue which was surprisingly tense at times - just because I do not have time. And I am alsways behind on the 'must binges' like House of Cards and Daredevil. I will watch them when regular tv is over because I can't fit them it. As for cost - I have said this before - I am not going to pay Fios 150.00 a month for cable, plus Netflix, plus Hulu, plus Amazon, plus NBC streaming - which is why I will not watch that new Star Trek. Now if Fios let me go a la cart and I could get rid of the hundreds of channels I don't watch and cut my bill in half - then maybe I'd pay for a few more streaming sites. But I've heard that A LA Cart cable will be pricey due to they lower costs by bundling stations.

I have heard that ESPN is by far the most expensive content that the cable companies pay. I will tell you that ESPN is the only reason I got cable to begin with and if it weren't there I wouldn't have it today. It's probably the most watched cable content--especially when you consider bars, restaurants,etc.

There is a lot of junk cable tv channels too. I have a feeling though that what I consider junk others might very much like. So, an ala carte could be nice. ATT's package isn't awful and it gives me some streaming too, like hbo go. But, unless I'm traveling the streaming doesn't make sense for me. I'll never get netflix mostly because I already have too many options. My daughter uses her friends account(that's not a good business model btw) and a friend of mine has one. He told me that Vikings is only available for the first few seasons. And of course you can't get true 1080P via wireless streaming--too much compaction, clipping. But, for most shows and TVs you probably don't need it.

Gotham - no idea who clown girl is but I do know the actress was on Orange is the New Black. But the other girl that dressed up with clown makeup is Harley Quinn...I don't think that's Harley Quinn! If we're trying to show the origin of Batman I think it was important to show him coming close to killing someone and then deciding against it...and learning very early on that he doesn't want to kill. That has always been a guideline of Batman's vigilante justice. I don't know if Bruce will train with Ras al Ghul (I don't know how to spend it either)....I think the Dark Knight Trilogy is only one interpretation of his origin. The showrunner has spoken in the past how he wasn't sure if that character would even be in this show....then got in trouble with fanboys when he made a comment about how old he would be at this point in Bruce's life (since he's supposed to be 100s of years old in the comics) I guess we'll see! But I enjoyed the episode as well.

@CABLE/Streaming - Yeah the whole point of the streaming offerings is to eventually "cut the cord"....at least that's what the young consumers want. Netflix CEO said that has never been his goal. So if you cut out your cable subscription and go a la carte....yeah...I think you're right. It's going to add up to getting less for maybe the same price or more. It'll be interesting to see how it all plays out.

Really??? ESPN is the most expensive? Do you mean outside of premium channels? Because I know HBO charges a high premium to the consumer...so I have to imagine it's expensive for the cable companies to offer it too.

Streaming definitely works in the home too. I have the blu-rays but for convenience I use HBO GO to rewatch Game of Thrones. If I ever decided to watch OZ, I could pull that right up and watch the entire series too. VEEP the same. You can't get that catalog on your cable box or DVR unless you have a hell of a lot of storage. So online catalogs at your fingertips are a nice thing to have...and again..changes the game in what you're watching in primetime. You could be watching a 20 year old series from start to finish instead of what is airing that night.

Back when I had Charter they had a HUGE library I could access from various media companies. Maybe they don't have it anymore but I on occassion consider going back to Charter for the library.

You're right ESPN is the most expensive cable group which is not identified as premium and paid for ala carte like HBO. But, they have been dividing up and creating various ESPN franchises so that you have to pay extra for them like HBO. Things that used to be free have to be paid extra for. In essence it's done to create a "sports" package to offset some of the cost of ESPN.

So, currently if you had simple basic, yes to get all of ESPN, including the "good stuff", you have to pay a premium somewhat like HBO. Difference being that the basic package with basic ESPN includes about $6/mo cost to cable companies just for ESPN basic. Keep in mind ESPN is Disney and they know how to play things and swing a mighty hammer

Grimm - yeah Renard kills Marwan which pisses of Hadrians Wall cause he was going to lead them to info and now the Black Claw wants Renard to run for mayor - making Renard a convenient double agent ! LOL

ESPN - if they hadn't started carrying NFL I'd never have it on. LOL Same for NFL network. I don't watch any other sports besides NFL any more. I'd dump al hte foreign language channels. Bye bye all shopping channels. Golf ? No thanks. How can they have a channel that is 24/7 golf any way. LOL Pretty much all the music channels. Hallmark, Lifetime, etc. All could go. I would say all the kids channels too but I do use them when my nieces are over. Most of those news channels can go too - rarely watch them.

Yeah Comcast/Verizon Fios in our area have on-demand but it's usually like 5-10 episodes at a time and usually the most recent. Meanwhile...HBO GO (that you get with your premium subscription) has access to ALL HBO original content and the current (plus) roster of movies that are airing.

Ahh gotcha on ESPN and the sports packages. I have noticed that with some of these recent packages.

Gotham - Hmmm...not sure I'd have to look that up. Not sure if in every origin story he's afraid of bats.

Grimm - Double agent indeed! I thought about that...he might run just to get on the inside.

Before you know it the GOLF channel will be airing original content like Happy Girlmore the TV Series just to stay profitable! lol

There are definitely too many channels I'd agree with that. The problem is, cable companies know which channels are the most popular and split them up across these low cost packages to force you to pick multiple packages! And they lump in all of these channels you DON'T want with them!

An a la carte offering would need to figure out a way to minimize cost per "channel/application" to make it a better experience for the client. APPLE is working on something and is hitting roadblocks with the various networks/studios. But they want to introduce a subscription streaming plan. Playstation and XBOX have services but I don't believe they have much traction yet. Guess we're in wait and see mode for now! Apple's new APPLE TV has the foundation to create something impressive eventually with the app store and the siri search across apps. Even Amazon has a decent streaming box that could do similar things. I'm sure Roku is looking into it too and Chromecast. We'll see what happens!

Gotham - believe it or not there is a Wikipedia page on "fear of bats" lol Here's a batman excerpt:

"A modern example associating fear with bats in fiction is DC Comics' Batman. In many adaptations, Batman is said to have chosen to emulate bats to strike fear into the hearts of criminals. In the film Batman Begins, Bruce Wayne, Batman's secret identity, actually develops a fear of bats as a child when he falls into a cave and is attacked by bats. Henri Ducard makes a grown up Bruce Wayne conquer his fear. One of Batman's enemies, the Scarecrow, is also mentioned as being afraid of bats, or more specifically, of Batman himself"

Part of my point is that these new start up streaming services will consolidate as well.

Also, the idea that a person has a sign on that can be shared is not a good business model for the long term. It's fun that you can watch your netflix anywhere and on almost any platform but that flexibility has a downside for the provider. For instance I'd have to have cable for my lake house, beach house and residence. With streaming svcs I only need one and all the family members can use it anywhere and give the sign on to others as well.

You can put device limit restrictions on logins. I certainly have shared my HBO GO login. Even Netflix. But if you only allow 10 devices per household to be authorized at one time to use Netflix you could control it like that. I don't think they currently do it that way (they used to), but they could.

You could go with more biometric authentication too to ensure the person accessing these services is truly authorized to do so.

I don't think they'll start moving to that type of security until the business model is actually a threat to compete with cable.

I see your point with the multiple residences. That's probably where the internet services costs will come into play. These cable companies aren't stupid...they'll eventually jack up the prices of broadband and wifi offerings...and you'll need a fast connection to justify streaming bandwidth. So you'll still need to have internet service providers in each residence. And that will probably cost you more than today as it wouldn't be bundled with cable TV.

At one point I had a verizon hot spot which I took with me. I can't recall but it was probably about $100/month and had limited use. But at a high level. But, having a residence telephone is important for faxes, elevators and alarm companies. So, that in turn means getting some kind of bundled plan makes sense.

If I told you how much I spend on telecommunications,etc, you would say I'm nuts!! I even think I'm nuts!

Yeah...I would love a hot spot that I could just pay by the day or week instead of having a monthly subscription. We could use it when we do our trips to visit family in Tennessee. But, rarely would need it anywhere else. The price just isn't worth it for us.

Nice on landlines...if you need all of that stuff, then yes those are helpful. We don't have a landline in our house, just our cell phones. I might think you're a little crazy if you have one but understand!

Americans secrets - article that catches up where everyone is. I re-watched the last 2 eps. I did remember Paige calling her pastor but forgot she actually said the words that the are russian spies. https://www.yahoo.com/tv/americans-season-4-secrets-173031298.html

Limitless - this show is always amusing and surprising. Loved them all talking to Brian in his head in his voice. Just cracked me up.Also just how much drunken Brian shared with anyone who would listen in that bar. Uh-Oh Naz is pissed, Rebecca now knows Sands is visiting Brian, and Sands now knows Piper is alive. Thought was fabulous that Brian bribes the prison official by giving him a chat with Grr Martin who tells him how all of Gof T's ends.

Saul - they certainly making it hard to tell if Chuck really is behind Kim's benching. He talks like it isn't him - and Hamlin says to Chuck that she is not out of the hot water yet - but then after Kim and Chuck share the coffee he says she'll be back in no time - and I bet she will now. Jimmy is an idiot - he should not have ditched that 1st year associate. But her many postits on his work were comical. He had to know she'd report that. I didn't think Jimmy was so bad at that dinner and I am glad that Rebecca did ot either - if Chuck had even tried to have conversation with him that Jimmy wouldn't have had to do most of the talking. I hope we actually get to see how Jimmy and Kim meet and become friends. Including that clerks love of Beanie babies was good - they were all the rage back then. Best part of course was seeing Tio Salamanca ! but oh boy - how do you say no to Tio ?

Americans - Thanks MJ! I definitely need to be reminded. Looking forward to that being back.

Still no Limitless or Saul. Lots of summer material!

GoT - Into Season 2 episode 7 on rewatch...still not liking this pace with April slowly creeping up. I need to buy season 5 now too. Well, really I don't need to since it's all on HBO Go but I do like those special features and it'll look nice on my shelf. :)

OJ - It was THE GLOVE episode. Chris asked OJ to try it on....Marcia was fired up. That much is known. Not sure how much is true that the Defense egged Chris on to ask OJ to try the glove...or that Shapiro tried it on himself first while everyone was in recess and not paying attention. I know the original case was Reality TV at its best (and worst...given the subject matter), but this show has been a surprise winner in its retelling and performances.

LImitless--Yea Brian and his girlfriend and events surrounding were funny. And of course they can't be together. Just BS to me, but hey they want the show to leave him open but not open to other relationships I guess.

I don't get where they're going in the long run with Mora. I mean it's pretty neat that a high powered actor drops in every now and then. Maybe he wants out of it?

Shield - haven't watched but have seen pics on internet - can't wait to find out why the general is dressed like a Geisha !

Bates - Holy crap ! Freddie Hightower needs an emmy ! When he was losing it at the table I thought Norma was going down. He is so convinced that Norma is the one doing all these things and he's going to protect her and stop her. Romero is an idiot for marrying into this whole thing. And where the heck is this body ? And on the flip side - he was even creepy when he was being all nice checking in that family. So are we to assume that when Norma came home he had changed out of his "Norma clothes' ? If I did not know we had another season I'd have said he might try to kill her then get stopped killing himself. Am i the only one wondering if Emma and her new lungs won't have long to live ? Nor will Dylan.

Limitless - that famous actor is an Executive producer on the show FYI. Not sure where they will go with the character though. The whole rice thing is pretty odd. I just love the humor.

Vikings-If you don't see Ragnar's end coming then you aren't watching--lol. His talk about getting old, doing drugs, etc. I really don't like the finehair actor. He's just way too short to be a viking and a king back then. BTW, even when Kalf was walking into the tent with Lagertha I said to myself, the title is "promise"--she's going to kill him. That whole storyline was very weak and got weaker. He should have killed her long ago and really there weren't any women earl's taking power by force--goes to the idea of a small king above. And yes I got it right on the ring and Bjorn's girlfriend. That guy's a walking dead man now.

And again we see the map for Bjorn.

And the ax in the head by Ivar killing another boy is a prelude. And how disghusting that nobody corrected him for killing the boy. That will lead to some issues down the road. I thought Ivar could walk btw.

Vikings - Definitely paying attention to Ragnar...even his appearance with the greying beard shows he is getting old. So this girl...she says that her father is emperor. Is that foreshadowing to something? Bjorn is appearing more and more like someone who could assume the protagonist role of the show. I figured the Ivar stuff is foreshadowing as well...but know nothing if his history in terms of walking or not. Did you see, unsurprisingly, that the show got renewed for another season?

GoT - Episode 8 of season 2...moving right along! Going to pick up season 5 today. :)

Vikings--I didn't see it got renewed. I hear of more people watching it so it seems to be gaining traction. There's going to be some huge surprises upcoming. I'm surprised Finehair is already here in a way but not in another. The one thing that SHOULD have of course happened is that as Ragnar has aged, so should have Lagertha. Auslaug is historically younger so her hanging around makes sense. Hopefully you are keeping up with the mentioning of Christians in each ep. At some point the muslims come into play too and I will be interested on how they portray that. Constantinople should come into play for sure. But I don't think it's a spoiler to say that there is a current backlash against Christianity going on right now.

Yidu being from China is intriguing me a lot. I'm having to check on the China connection. I know there is a lot of Russian history that begins with vikings and some of the groundwork is being laid now in the show. And the vikings are noted for having really established the global trading routes so the Chinese connection could possibly come into play.

One thing I enjoy about the show is the tie in with GRRM and the battle of Hastings among other elements. I suspect that GoTs "one true god" along with their other gods and what actually happened with the vikings and religions are related.

Vikings - All interesting information on the actual history. Definitely am keeping up with the Christian talk in every episode. Yeah, they've focused on polytheism vs. Christianity for all these seasons so it would be interesting to introduce other religions.

Yeah GRRM definitely associates the Westeros/Essos religions with real world religions...so I'm sure some of the historical conflicts are related in there too.

Vikings 3/10 - I know I am a week behind and you all probably just watched the new one last night but I only just got to see last weeks. Wasn't real happy with Lagertha saying to that girl - you only have one life - go live it with my son and leave your kid here for me to look after. Crazy. And why can't Anslaugh teach her kid about the old ways and the gods herself ? That one King sure sees everything - Judith being too close to her father-in-law, the danger of an heir to the throne being the child (supposedly) of Ragnar. Forgot he was Judith's father. Rollo must really have some moves for Gisla to do such a 180. Just saying. ;-D And Bjorn - first the bear and then the guy sent to kill him. When he walked into where Lagertha lives I thought it was going to be about the assassin they sent - never dreamed it was about that girl. Actor who plays Bjorn certainly has bulked up for the role. That slave girl very clearly stated that her kidnappers would not dare kill her - so she must be someone back where she is from. I guess we are to infer that the woman King Harald is talking about who 'got away' is Anslaugh herself ? Went back and read your comments from last week - good point about Bjorn new girl - being the ex-kings sons wife - can help him determine who the ring came from

Daredevil S2 was released last night. Sigh. I'll get to it in June I guess - just like last year.

Keep in mind that back then there was not a Suez canal. So have to go around the horn to China. That's a long way. I haven't found that trade route yet. There was trade with the Persians. The vikings did trade in silk.

Quantico - I have quit this show. Noticed I had not missed it while it was gone and am kinda over it.

Colony - took me a minute to realize that we were seeing Charlie finally. I did hope to see the alien - but not surprised that is for next season. At least we know there are aliens now. At least this time Will said the heck with Katie and went after his son. Of course now the other son is busted. But who was watching Katie with a hidden camera ?? That could be interesting.

Shameless - did we even talk about this one ? LOL Only Fiona gets engaged at her divorce settlement. V and Svetlana getting married - crazy ! Frank finding his joy in Poppy tea. Don't even know how to write about Deb's joy. LOL

Crazy behind on Brooklyn 99 and Grinder.

Legends - last week was a really good episode (just watched last night) with all the issues that come up with race and sexism. But how come all of a sudden Stein and Jax aren't feeling what the other feels ? Didn't they do that ? I know they can't just kill Savage right away - he's the big bad afterall - but their attempts are just always so idiotic. I would have liked it if we had come to find out that Nurse Betty becomes in future some big leader in the gay movement. I was confused by the end - Kronos gets on the ship with much stronger weapons - I got that. But why would they take off with Kronos on board ? Did I miss them getting rid of Kronos ?

Bates - did you catch the awesome shot at the beginning of seeing Norma in the upstairs window by the way ?

Shield/Saul - watched both but have no time for comments. More meetings.

Vikings - Waiting to watch TWD so I started googling stuff....I think we forgot that season 4 of Vikings is a 20 episode split season order. No wonder they're taking their time prior to another voyage! So they're doing 10 now but I guess we'll be getting 10 more later in the year...not sure if season 5 is a similar order or not.